


Art in Motion

by theunapologeticnarrative



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, F/M, Flirting, Gen, Rick Grimes in his uniform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-30
Updated: 2016-06-30
Packaged: 2018-07-15 16:33:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7230154
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theunapologeticnarrative/pseuds/theunapologeticnarrative
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Deputy Sheriff Grimes needs Michonne to slow down for a second. (Richonne AU)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Art in Motion

**Author's Note:**

> This is a short piece based on a prompt by tumblr user alyssag321. it was originally posted on gimmetheheadcanons.tumblr.com

_Another speed demon in a flashy car_ , Rick Grimes groaned as he got out of his modest patrol car to once again do his job; reprimanding spoiled young men with clear death wishes. However, as he approached the vehicle, Rick was surprised to see it was a woman in her late thirties behind the wheel of the shiny red Porsche, wearing a fierce frown and an elegant pale pink evening dress soiled by vivid green substance down her low cut front. 

Rick nervously cleared his throat before speaking. 

“Ma'am do you have any ide-” 

“Yes.” She snapped, interrupting him curtly before he could even begin his well-rehearsed  _speed kills_ speech. “I know  _exactly_  how damn fast I was driving. Apparently not fast enough.”

She refused to turn her perfectly shaved head to face him, gripping the steering wheel angrily instead. She breathed heavily, her round nose flaring with rage Rick knew he did not deserve. 

“Ma’am, I’m gonna have to ask you to not interrupt me.” Rick warned not offended yet not happy with the level of contempt in her voice and on her face. He was after all, as deputy sheriff, accustomed to a certain level of respect.

There was a tense moment between them where Rick wondered if he’d end up cuffing this beautiful headstrong lady. He wanted to laugh at the thought of his cuffs clashing with the delicate jewelry against her deeply rich skin.  

However, she finally decided to face him, her proud face making Rick feel small and sorry for a moment. Her dark eyes, effective in the art of intimidation, were unblinking and cursing him for his unwelcome intervention.

“Look I’m not normally this -  _tense_  - but I just don’t have time have time for this.” She answered frankly and firmly.

With this not being a battle he was willing to lose, Rick Grimes forcibly snapped out of his speechless state, throwing the woman an unsympathetic glance before pulling out his pen and pad.

 “I’m just trying to do my job Ma’am.” Rick shrugged, the enchantment effectively broken.

“So am I!” She yelled back more defiant then ever. 

Rick remained calm, ready to cut this argument short. “You a race car driver?” he asked sounding deceptively sincerely. 

She gave him a look of disgust before replying. “No.” 

“Then will you please let me finish.” 

His stern tone and even sterner look although not inspiring fear, carried enough authority for the woman to finally back down. Satisfied, Rick added on a courteous _“Ma’am”_ as per usual.  

“You don’t get it.” She whispered in a low whine but Rick Grimes was beyond caring at this point.  

“80 on a 40 road.” He said, cocking his head to the side “Yeah…I think I have all the facts I need.”

“Licence and registration.” He demanded, determined to give her a ticket and send her on her way. “Please.”

Rick Grimes however was caught off guard by her next response.

“ _Fuck_.” 

“Excuse me?”

“I said fuck.” She repeated louder, this time placing even more emphasis on the offending word. “Not you. Not me. Just  _fuck_.” 

“Fuck  _this”_ She cried frustratingly pulling out her licence and shoving it in his hand before pointing to the stain ruining her dress “And everything that happened today.”

She looked on the verge of angry tears and Rick suddenly felt a pang of guilt. 

“Look I’m not the bad guy here.” Rick said still strangely on the defense even though she was no longer being antagonistic but instead slumping over her steering wheel sighing mournfully. 

“No you’re not.”  He heard her mutter. When she looked up the frown on her face was gone and for the first time that night Rick saw how soft yet still spellbinding her eyes could be. 

“My one year old is the villain of the piece, see?” 

At her request, Rick found himself looking at her chest with his eyes lingering on her breasts a little longer than they should have. Feeling instantly ashamed, Rick quickly refocused his eyes onto hers, determined to hold their intense gaze.  

She, however, did not notice and Rick relaxed enough to smile and regain his professionalism. 

“I’m the head curator at the National Gallery of Art,” she began to explain, relaxing in her seat as she told her tale.  “And we have twenty five of the best and brightest contemporary artists attending the unveiling of their never before seen collaborative project.”

She spoke with such passion in her voice, unable to hold back her excitement at the event’s magnitude. Dazzled by her pearly white smile, Rick nodded, begging her to go on.

How could someone’s face be so instantly transformed, Rick wondered, taking in every detail of her gentler more open countenance. 

She continued to talk. “It will be the most culturally significant piece of work of our time, a painstaking labor of love bringing together everything that is beautiful in this damn world.”

“Sounds impressive.” Rick admitted, still not sure where her story was headed yet every bit as captivated by it as he was by its narrator. 

“You don’t get it.”

He chuckled at the way she predictably decided her world full of colors and cultural was beyond his ‘simple’ understanding. “Oh sure, I guess where I come from they don’t teach the difference between a Miro and my Judith’s finger paintings.” 

His sarcasm, although playful, was as thick as his Georgia accent, causing her stare back at him with wide awkwardly apologetic eyes.

Rick may not be a fancy curator, but he was far from being just another ‘uncultured hick’ and _something_  inside of him wanted to make that clear to this sophisticated stranger.

“You were saying Ma’am?” Rick asked casually and she laughed, shaking her head for a second before looking him straight in the eye.

Rick welcomed the challenge that look on her face brought.

“Oh, so _that’s_  how it is?” She asked, frowning slightly but the smile never leaving her face. It was as if she was just now, for the first time,  _truly_ seeing Rick, her eyes travelling across his uniformed body before connecting with his blue ones.

She had been a gallery of emotions since the moment he met her, but now looking upon that oddly bashful grin on her face after being teased, Rick believed he had just found his favorite one. 

“Yeah, that’s  _exactly_  how it is.” Rick whispered confidently. 

She quietly licked her full lips before moving on. 

Rick loved how she barely conceded a thing.  “Anyway,” she said drawing out the word like a song. 

“The point is, it is damn important and I’m supposed to be there making sure it runs smoothly.” Her tone was serious once again, “instead I’m sat in my car covered in baby sick, driving like a madwoman to get to the only boutique that’ll loan me a dress at such short notice.”

Rick was sorry to see the smile fall from her face as she regained awareness of her miserable situation. 

Noticing his concerned stare, she waved her hand out in front of him. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m not gonna cry.” She insisted causing Rick to smile.

Somehow he was expecting nothing less from this warrior woman who picked fights with cops. 

“I would’ve.” He said sympathetically. 

Rick hesitated for a moment before raising a question that played on his mind for a little while now. “Ma’am, this might not be any of my business, but can’t your husband get you a dress from home?”

As soon as the question left his mouth, Rick Grimes was full of regret. At no point during their conversation had he noticed a wedding ring on her hand. Suddenly Rick thought he could hear his friend Glenn, scathingly whispering as he so often did, the words ‘ _nice going dumbass’._    

Kicking himself in his mind, Rick braced himself for her response. 

There was annoyance on her face but thankfully none of it directed at him. “Oh you mean call the asshole that walked out on Andre and I,  let him back into my house to go through my shit? Yeah no thanks, I think I’ll pass.”

He didn’t know what he was expecting when he asked the question, but whatever it was, this was infinitely better. Rick suddenly had an idea on how he could be of some help to this sad stranger, now instantly transformed into a damsel in distress Deputy Sheriff Grimes would love nothing more than to rescue.

_Or at least impress._

“Look how about you promise to drive safely, get to your fancy art party.” Rick suggested, confidently leaning in through the rolled down car window. “And I’ll pick up your dress from wherever you want - within reason of course.”

She had a suspicious look on her face “Why would you do that?” 

“Well,” Rick shrugged suddenly searching his mind for a reason that sounded more acceptable than the truth, “ I guess us single parents gotta stick together.” 

He thought it impossible but her face looked even more surprised than it did when he made his generous offer.

“Divorced with two of my own.” He explained, placing conscious emphasis on the word  _divorced and_ suddenly wearing his failed marriage like some sort of badge of honor. 

“Must be hard.” She whispered, looking genuinely sorry, and her kind eyes making Rick feel uncomfortable.

“No harder than being the art curator of THE National Art Gallery.” He responded, teasing her again in an effort to return their earlier moments of casual flirtation.

She laughed loudly “Did I really say that? God what an uppity bitch I sounded like.” 

Alarmed at the prospect of having insulted her, Rick immediately protested his words having any such implication. “No, no, no, not at all!”

She fired him a grateful smile and pressed the button on the ignition. “Well thank you anyway.” She began, readying herself to say goodbye. “Not gonna lie, I was prepared to be thrown in jail  _or worse_ after you stopped me. Lucky me, meeting Officer Friendly.”

She held out her hand, patiently awaiting the return of her identification and Rick quickly scribbled down her details before handing it back together with a speeding ticket.  

“Not  _that_  lucky.” Rick Grimes smirked at the ridiculous cheek of this woman he had become hopelessly attracted to. 

“Wow.” She mouthed trying her best not to laugh in disbelief at what just happened. Still not believing her eyes, she examined and re-examined the authenticity of the ticket and the cost of the fine.

She then looked back at Rick with pleading eyes.

But Rick refused to budge. “Yeah, just doing my job Ma’am.” her reminded her, holding up his hands innocently. 

He was glad to see her cave in and flash him a seductive smile. “At least use my name if you’re gonna screw me like this.” 

“Michonne.” He obeyed not skipping a beat.

For a moment, they let the silence sink in, relishing the sudden increase in heat between them.   

“Here.” Michonne finally said, handing him a business card she pulled out of the sparkling clutch bag on the passenger’s seat. “Get me that dress from  _Peletier’s_ and maybe, just maybe, I’ll let you take a peek at the exhibition.”

She let their fingers touch as Rick reached for the card, her soft brown skin promising more than just a peek. Not breaking eye contact Rick curiously whispered, “At the paintings?” 

“Right, the paintings.” She repeated, her breathing now getting a little heavier, for a moment being on exhibition for his intense blues to completely devour. 

When he didn’t react, she slowly pulled away. Their hands no longer connecting, Rick swallowed hard admittedly craving more than just this whisper of a touch and wishing he took the opportunity she had presented him with.  

Except that just wasn’t his style, even though everything about her screamed;  _it could be_. 

Catching himself, Rick finally took a professional step back again.  

“What did I say about going too fast?” He warned Michonne,  

“Not sure, I didn’t let you finish.” She said mocking him. Michonne winked and Rick’s heart went into overdrive. 

“Anyway see you later officer.” 

With that abrupt goodbye, she coolly rolled up her window and drove off without looking back at the stunned man in her rear mirror. Rick Grimes stood in that place for a full minute. Staring at a now empty road, he replayed in his mind the incredible interaction he had with that speeding stranger and her enticing invitation at the end.

Grinning whilst holding on tightly to that precious business card she handed him, he finally began his return to the patrol car and walking with a slow silly swagger he whispered his response into the hot night air. 

“ _Hell yes ma’am_.” 


End file.
